


A Storm Coming

by li0nrunner



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Book 5: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2012-12-23
Updated: 2013-02-04
Packaged: 2017-11-22 02:30:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,684
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/604820
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/li0nrunner/pseuds/li0nrunner
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In the middle of Book Five: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix<br/>Neville's chasing after Luna, but he's sure he's going to screw it up. Neville just doesn't know what's harder, learning new spells at Dumbledore's Army meetings or learning to get a girl to like him.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Galleon Burns

It was late Thursday night when he felt the light burn in his pocket for the first time. He jumped slightly, sitting up suddenly in his bed.  _Good god,_ he thought, wincing at the burn, not realizing what it was at first. His hand searched his clothes until he found it. In his front jeans pocket was the little golden Galleon. Or so it seemed. It was a fake. Harry Potter had just started Dumbledore’s Army, and Neville was ready to fight. Since the meeting in the Shrieking Shack, he had been dying for the coin to burn with the time and date of the next meeting. Neville wiped dust off of the coin and peered at it closely. The next meeting would be Saturday at eleven at night. Just two days, and he’d be off to the Room of Requirement, practicing spells and dueling.  
And he’d be able to see _her_ again. Most people thought she was strange. They avoided her because she was different. But Neville admired her originality. Beautiful, shining Luna Lovegood. Always bouncing around happily with her long blonde hair. She was brilliant, even moreso than most of the other Ravenclaws he knew. But she was also brave like a Gryffindor and kind like a Hufflepuff. He didn't really understand her, but to Neville, she was perfect.  
Neville slid off his bed and placed the coin on his bedside table. He checked his watch. Nearly midnight. All the other boys were asleep. He quickly shrugged off his clothes and pulled on a pair of pajamas.  
Neville had taken to staying up late reading up on Herbology. He just couldn't manage to make satisfying potions or get the charms just right, but plants made sense. They were like little people, and Neville liked caring for them. And not just that, he was good at it, and it was very rare for Neville to be good at something.  
Neville picked up  _One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi_ off his bed and placed it next to the coin. He sighed.  _If plants are all I'm good for, why on Earth am I in Gryffindor?_ he thought to himself. He felt his eyes droop, and he yawned. He shook his head, got into bed, and was asleep in a matter of minutes.

~~~

Everyone was silent at the Gryffindor table the next morning at breakfast. Harry, Ron, Hermione, Ginny, and Neville all looked at each other knowingly but said nothing. Even Fred and George were quiet. Seamus and Dean chatted in whispers, but the silence, especially from the Weasley twins, had everyone hushed.  
"Well, I'm going to go to the library," said Hermione, looking around nervously.  
"I'll go with you," Neville said. Hermione looked surprised but she smiled. The two headed out the doors of the Great Hall.  
Once they were out of the Hall, Hermione said, "I just wanted to brush up on  _Hogwarts, A History_ before our, you know, meeting."  
Neville nodded. "I'm gonna, err, read some...books," he mumbled.  
Hermione peered sideways at him curiously. "You're going to _read_ some _books_?" she repeated flatly, skipping up the stairs two at a time.  
"Yeah," Neville said, staring at the ground as he tried to keep up with her. "You know, in the library. Books."  
Hermione stopped, and Neville did the same. She tilted her head. "Are you alright?"  
Neville continued to stare at the floor. "Err, yeah. I was just wondering...something."  
"What is it? I might've read about it, and if I haven't, we can go look it up," Hermione said quickly, putting a hand on his shoulder.  
Neville laughed a little. "No, it's not like that, it's not in a book, really."  
Hermione crossed her arms. "What could possibly be  _not_ in a book?"  
He looked up and smiled at her. "Do you talk to Luna?"  
"Oh!" exclaimed Hermione, putting her hand to her mouth in surprise. "I don't believe I've ever read about that."


	2. The First Meeting

Neville sat still on his bed for an hour on Saturday night before he left for the Dumbledore's Army meeting. He stared at the moving hands on his watch. They seemed to be moving slower and slower as time passed.  
It was ten thirty-nine. Neville layed back on his bed.  _Just act natural_ , he thought to himself, trying to remember everything Hermione had told him in the library the day before. He pictured Luna walking into the Room of Requirement. What could he possibly say to her?  _I suppose I could ask her to go to Hogsmeade with me_. But then once he got the words out, what would she say? And then he'd have to go and perform spells in front of her. Spells that he would almost definitely screw up.  _I don't know which would be worse, if I say the spell and something goes wrong or if nothing happens at all._ He sighed and checked his watch. Ten forty-seven. He sat up, grabbed his wand from the bedside table, and headed out.  
He climbed out from behind the Fat Lady's portrait to find that there were far more people roaming the castle than he had expected. Everyone in the DA had agreed to walk to the Room of Requirement alone so as to avoid attracting attention, but Neville found it difficult even by himself. He had found the Room of Requirement on the fifth floor, but after avoiding several groups of students and teachers, Neville found himself on the third floor. He finally got to a hallway that was empty when a shadow fell over him. He turned around.  
"Good evening, Mr. Longbottom," growled Snape in a low voice.  
Neville just stared with wide eyes.  
"What on Earth could you possibly be doing here on the third floor on a Saturday night all alone?"  
Neville opened his mouth but no words came out.  
"I do hope you are perhaps on your way to the library to work on the essay I assigned you yesterday. And I  _really_ hope it's better than your last essay or you might find yourself in detention."  
Neville nodded, sidestepped, and sprinted around the corner. He found himself in front of the library, and he ducked in. Stopping to catch his breath, he looked around the library. It was empty except for a bit of bright yellow hair that could barely be seen through the bookshelves.  _Luna!_ Neville debated whether he should go to her or run for it. He was just thinking he wasn't sure if he'd rather face Luna or Snape when the yellow hair vanished and was replaced with a pair of shining blue eyes.  
"Neville?"  
 _Oh god._  
"Neville, is that you?" Luna peered out from behind the bookshelf. She smiled. "Oh, good! I thought it was you!" She skipped out and greeted him with a swift hug. "Snape found me. I panicked and ran, and I ended up here."  
Neville blinked at her stupidly.  
"Are you alright?" she asked, tilting her head.  
He blinked hard. "Err, yeah, I'm fine. Snape found me, too."  
Luna took Neville's hand. Surprised, he tried to clasp his fingers around hers, but her hand moved. She turned his arm over to check his watch.  _Stupid,_ he thought to himself.  
"It's ten past eleven," Luna said softly. "We'll be late."  
Neville said nothing. He stared as Luna's skin brushed against his.  
"Are you sure you're alright?"  
 _Wake up, moron._ He nodded. "I'm great, yeah," he said.  
Luna pursed her lips skeptically. "We should get going."  
"Right. Let's go."  
Neville peered out the doors, signed to Luna that the coast was clear, and they stepped silently out into the hallway. Thankfully, they ran into very few people. They made it to the fifth floor without any questions being asked. When they reached the door to the Room of Requirement, Harry and Ron were guarding it.  
"Hey guys," Harry said distractedly, peering over Neville's shoulder. "You didn't get caught or anything, did you?"  
"Snape found us both, but we got away," Neville said.  
Ron nudged Harry. "Don't worry, mate. Cho will be here."  
Harry nodded, still looking down the hall.  
"Anyway," Ron said, looking back at Neville. "Looks like you finally stepped up, mate, huh?" He nodded his head towards Luna. "You two are cute."  
"What?" Luna said.  
Neville's eyes widened. He shook his head furiously.  
"Oh!" Ron exclaimed, realising his mistake. "You didn't...?"  
"What on Earth are you talking about?" Luna looked from Ron to Neville. "Do you know what he's talking about?"  
"Nope, not at all," Neville said, now looking at the floor.  
Luna squinted curiously. Just then, Harry jumped behind Ron. "She's coming. I can't do it." And with that, he turned and hurried into the Room of Requirement. Ron rolled his eyes, and herded everyone inside.  


Harry started off with a nervous speech about something that was probably important, but Neville could barely focus on it. "We have to be prepatred," he heard Harry say. "There's a storm coming. Voldemort is strong again..."  
Neville didn't hear much after that. He was pointedly staring at the floor, doing his best to not look at Luna. After a few minutes, he couldn't help himself any longer, and he looked across the sea of people. Luna was looking forward at Harry, paying attention to whatever he was saying about Umbridge. Then, she turned her head and looked right at Neville. Embarrassed, he ducked behind Fred Weasley, who was thankfully a bit taller than Neville.  
Harry then quickly demonstrated a stunning spell. Neville did his best to memorise Harry's movements and words. Harry instructed them all to get into pairs, which sent Neville into a brief panic. Thankfully, Harry walked up to him and said, "Do you want to work with me, then, Neville?" Neville nodded and smiled. Neville and Harry shot spells back and forth for about a half hour. Neville was knocked backwards multiple times, but Harry stayed where he was. Neville could barely focus, and even if he wasn't worried about Luna, he doubted he would've been able to get the spell right anyway.  _God, I can be such an idiot,_ Neville thought.  _I'd like to Stupefy myself._ And suddenly, Harry went flying backwards. Neville froze, and the whole room when silent. "I did it," he whispered.  
"You did it, Neville!" Harry shouted from the floor. He got up and high-fived Neville. All the other boys suddenly rushed up to him to clap him on the shoulder and congratulate him.  
"Wicked," said Fred and George together.  
"Bloody hell, mate," said Ron. "You really got him good."  
Neville smiled. He turned around to see Luna looking at him. She was smiling, too. Neville nodded at her, and Luna gave him a small wave before turning back to Ginny and Hermione.  
"Sorry about earlier," Ron said. "It looks like she's not, you know, freaked out or anything, right?"  
Neville nodded at him. "Yeah, it's alright. I think everything's just fine."


	3. The Disarming Spell

Throughout the rest of the week, Neville avoided Luna at all costs. Any time he saw her in the hall, he bolted in the other direction. Since she was a fourth year, he never had classes with her, but Luna was friends with a lot of Gryffindors, so she was often hanging up by Gryffindor Tower. Neville would hide around the corner for as long as it took until she left. It wasn't that he didn't want to be around her. He of course thought of her constantly and would have given anything to touch her, hold her, kiss her -- anything. But that was a far-off dream. And Neville couldn't bear to face her now that Ron had slipped up. What if she put the pieces together and figured out that Neville liked her? That couldn't be too difficult, considering how blunt Ron had been

 _I guess it could've been worse,_ Neville thought while laying in his bed late Wednesday night.  _He could've said "Hey, Luna! Neville's hoplessly in love with you!"_ Neville sighed. Was he really  _in love_? He was only fifteen. He honestly didn't know. He felt like he was a bit young to be in love, but then again, he couldn't imagine liking her any more than he already did.  _Maybe I am in love,_ he thought. Then he scoffed at himself.  _If the other guys could hear me, man, they'd never let me live it down. Ooh, Neville's in love._ He shook his head.  _Doesn't matter. She'll never think of me like that, not even a little bit._  Suddenly, he felt the burn in his pocket again. He pulled out the fake Galleon and peered at it closely. The second meeting would be on Saturday. And with that, he rolled over and went to sleep. _  
_

~~~

On Saturday night, Neville walked quickly and nervously to the Room of Requirement. Once again, Snape found him in the hallway, but Neville barely blinked.  
"Where do you think you're going, Mr. Longbottom?" Snape sneered.  
"Yep," Neville said, not looking up and not stopping.  
Snape stood stunned with his mouth hanging open.

Neville was one of the first to arrive at the DA meeting. Hermione was standing guard outside the door. "Hey, Neville," she said.  
"Hey," Neville mumbled. "Uh, is Luna here yet?" he asked, looking at the floor.  
"No, not yet," Hermione said. "You're quite early."  
"Oh, okay," he said, and he walked past her into the Room of Requirement.  
Ten minutes later, everyone had arrived except Luna. Neville edged over to Hermione and Ron. "D'you think she's coming?" he whispered.  
Hermione shrugged and turned to Ron. "Have you spoken to Luna?"  
"What?" said Ron, who was apparently more concerned with a fly buzzing around the room than their conversation. "Oh, Luna? Yeah, Harry said something about a potions test or something that she has to study for, so she's not gonna be here tonight."  
"Oh, that's perfect!" Hermione exclaimed.  
Ron and Neville both looked at her with raised eyebrows.  
"What?" Neville asked.  
"Well," Hermione began, "she'll need someone to get her caught up, you know, with whatever we learn today. I was going to work with her alone this week, but you can do it! That way you can be alone with her."  
"But..." Neville stammered. "I'm no good at this stuff."  
Hermione smiled. "Work with me tonight. I'll make sure you get the spell right."  
Neville smiled back. "Thanks, Hermione."  
Harry taught them a disarming spell,  _Expelliarmus_. Neville worked tirelessly with Hermione, and after an hour, he was able to disarm her.  
"You got it!" Hermione shouted.  
Everyone stopped what they were doing to look at him. Neville grinned shyly.  
By the end of the meeting, Neville had disarmed everyone in the room. "Honestly, Hermione," he said. "I owe you one."  
"Don't worry about it, Neville," she said. "That's what friends are for."

~~~

The next day, Neville went to look for Luna. Sure enough, she was in the library with a stack of potions books on the table next to her.  
He walked over and sat down across from her. "Hey," he said, his voice shaking.  
"Hi, Neville. You've got something to say that makes you nervous," she said, looking at him brightly.  
He stared at her with wide eyes. "Err, I don't know," he mumbled. But he found new courage in her friendly smile. "You weren't at the meeting last night, so I thought I'd show you what you missed."  
"Oh good! I was hoping you'd say that!"  
Neville blinked. "Really? You...me?" he said stupidly.  
She laughed, and it sounded like a jingling bell. "Of course. I don't want to fall behind, do I?" she said.  
"Oh, err, right." Neville moved his leg, and it brushed up against Luna's. His face went bright red, but she continued to smile.  
"I have my test tomorrow morning," she said. "So maybe we can do it tomorrow night?"  
Neville nearly choked. "Do...it. The spell. Right. The meeting. Learning." He continued to stumble over his words, but her smile never faltered. "Okay then," he said finally. "I'll leave you to your studying." He got up and practically ran for the door.


End file.
